WRMR555

Today's update: I decided on and purchased the Ed Fong GMRS antenna, for a few reasons made obvious by this handy chart: Antenna Gain (dBi) Gain (dBd) SWR Height (in) Weight (lbs) Price Ed Fong DBJ-UHF (GMRS) 5 2.85 <1.5:1 40 ~1 $70.55 Comet CA-712EFC 9 6.85 <1.5:1 125 2.8125 $199.95 I want a good-enough antenna that will easily go atop a lightweight mast/pole, fit in the back of a truck when broken down, and be dummy-proof to set up. The Fong checked all those boxes, and came in at about 1/3 the price of the highly recommended CA-712EFC. I'd opt for the 712EFC if I was looking for something that was going to be even quasi-permanent, but that's not my goal. Besides, I can always buy a bigger base antenna for a base repeater later. (That's how this hobby works, right? ) Now, as for a portable mast, I'm looking for something that will get the antenna to the 20-25' range, collapse down to 5' or less, and be easy to carry and set up with one person (two if guy wires are necessary). Here are some options I've found thus far: Mast Maximum Height (ft) Packed Height (ft) Top Diameter (in) Bottom Diameter (in) Weight (lbs) Material Price Jackite 28' Thick Tip Orange Fiberglass Windsock Pole 28 3.8 0.1875 1.875 5 Fiberglass $89.95 SOTABeam 10m 32 1.92 0.15 1.929 2.9 Fiberglass $80.44 MFJ-1915 25 4.79 1.02 2.165 6.8 Fiberglass $159.95 MFJ-1913 28 3.83 0.333 1.83 4.4 Fiberglass $129.95 Spiderbeam 10m HD 32.81 2.36 0.24 2.6 4.9 Fiberglass $68.51 MFJ-1904HD 24 4 1 2.5 14 Fiberglass $199.95 MFJ-1919EXAL 18 5 0.75 1.5 24 Aluminum/Fiberglass $199.95 MFJ-1919EX 18 5 0.75 1.5 24.75 Fiberglass $199.95 I've noticed that the lighter fiberglass telescoping masts have an incredibly small diameter at the top sections, which is great for wire antennas, but it clearly makes attaching a fiberglass or PVC antenna a bit more difficult. I'd seen a suggestion to keep the top few sections collapsed inside one another and then secure the antenna to those sections with clamps, or something similar. Suggestions/recommendations, on either the mast or the securing method?

Thanks for the input. I've seen a few folks mention that the TK-X80H and TK-X90H radios work well as repeaters even at higher duty cycles if you bump them down about 20% from max power and put a fan on them. I figured 40W and a fan would be a good spot for me to start. Even at their most used, I don't see mine seeing significant use or long conversations. Either way, we'll see how it goes!

Nice find on that 97L! That is a heck of a deal. The TK-880s have OEM pigtails that you can attach to the control board and run out the power wire grommet to an outside 9-pin connector. Alternatively, you can solder to a couple spots on the board to get COS, PTT, etc. I intend to check the manual for pinout info and make a connector that will bridge between the pigtail and whatever controller or URI I use.

Thanks for the tip on M&P. Their Ultraflex 10 looks promising: it's just below LMR-400-UF in cost per foot, has better attenuation in the 450 MHz realm (2.4 dB/100') than either LMR-400-UF (3.3) or LMR-400 (2.7), has a comparable bend radius, and weighs about the same as LMR-400-UF. It's towards the top of my list of options!

The RT97L was my first consideration, but when I started digging into the DIY, I thought I'd be able to spend about as much or less to build my own with higher-output radios and additional controller features. I have everything I need to duplicate the functionality of the 97L except the repeater controller, and I'm only at about $460, so with a controller, that puts me at right about the market price on a new 97L. (I'm typing most of this to confirm it to myself more than anything...ha.) I haven't dug into the pi-star/hamvoip/allstar stuff yet, but thanks for the new rabbit hole. Briefly, does the pi-star do the repeater controlling, or is it just feeding audio/etc. to a separate, stand-alone repeater controller?

It’s on the list! I picked up a used RFS 633-6A-2N for a pretty decent price.

I'm gathering all of the parts and knowledge I need for a portable TK-880H/TK-880 repeater. A lot of relevant info is documented in various places on this and other forums, and especially in Steve's Building a Repeater out of Two Kenwood TK-880 thread (thanks, @Steve!). The key difference for my project is that it will be portable. Why? Because I'd like to have a repeater that I can have set up at home, or take with me for outdoor events (camping, whatever). Plus, it's a fun project! Requirements: single-person deployable weather-resistant transportable in a personal vehicle (car, pickup, etc.) Minimum 5 mile range (more better) Repeater ID and TOT functions Nice-to-haves Voice transmission of local weather watches/warnings (I saw it on this video, and it seemed cool. PI-REPEATER, I presume?) The plan: Build it into a Rigid box (the top one on the stack): One of the lower boxes will house a 100 Ah portable battery set-up with solar and DC-DC charging, and will primarily live in a vehicle and serve as both an aux battery and a deployable mobile power source. But that's a build for a different forum! In any event, it will power the repeater when the repeater is mobile. Repeater components ( = have already) TK-880H Tx radio (with mic) TK-880 Rx radio RFS 633-6A-2N duplexer (2) KCT-19 cables (for repeater controller integration) Repeater controller (model TBD) Cooling/ventilation fan Bulkhead connectors: 12V power (Anderson Power Pole) Antenna (N-female / N-female) RG-45 (if using PI-REPEATER) Ed Fong GMRS antenna 20-25' telescoping mast (painter's pole & guy lines?) Antenna feed coax (LMR-400-UF?) Internal connection cables (LMR-240?) Initial questions Any overall concerns about the current plan or components? Coax: a lot of folks seem to push towards Heliax for repeaters, but I'm balancing loss against portability and cost. Thoughts on my -400 and -240 plan? Repeater controller: recommendations? Again, I really like the ability for the repeater to say something like "Hurricane Watch. Flood Warning." when those things are active and I have internet access for the repeater controller, but I presume that would require using PI-REPEATER or something else that is inherently more complex than an analog, nonvolatile-memory-bearing controller. If the PI-REPEATER can be set-and-forget, great. If it's fickle (as Pis can be), then maybe something else with the Pi piggybacking the audio in? I'm really looking forward to getting this stuff put together, and would love any thoughts or feedback.